115 - Tentative Cover Art (TWJ)

Bronzed - Chapter 2 (GLD)

CHAPTER 2

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To: Office of Department of Interplanetary Space Exploration Director

From: Office of the United Nations Space and Sciences

Date: 21:30 UTC, September 23, 2040

Due to the recent assassination of the Director-General your letter will be filed until a new Director-General is chosen. Protocol dictates the order of which the letters filed will be view by the new Director-General so no guarantees can be given on when a response will be sent.

You are entitled to file a dispute to the United Nations General Assembly secretary to proceed with any given matters that are classified and/or require immediate attention.

Please address all other questions to the Department of Information and Resources.

Thank you,

Pedro Henrique Martins Dos Santos

Sub-Secretary of the United Nations Space and Sciences Department

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The school was set up so there were two entrances: One for 16 year-olds and one for everyone else. A lady in the front was giving directions. She wore a plain gray skirt and a white blouse. Her hair was up in a bun and her eyes were covered by glasses that had a shade of dark gray lenses. Government employees were required to look as simple as possible. She definitely looked friendly enough.

“Those who were born between May 1^st, 2039 and April 30^th 2040 will go on my right. Everyone else will please enter on my left.” She said. Her voice was a little high pitched.

“Is she the one in charge of orientation?” I whispered to Calla. “I’ve heard they usually get crazed generals with glass eyes that yell and the top of their lungs.”

            “No, it’s the quieter government women that you gotta watch out for. I heard they are horrible enough to eat their own babies.” She said.

            The thing about Calla is it’s very hard to tell when she’s joking and when she isn’t. Sometimes she’d laugh or smirk, but most of the time she would stay straight-faced. I was always caught in a mix between belief and denial.

            “Is that so? I doubt anyone would marry a government wretch let alone procreate with her.”

            “Haha, hey, I’m an aspiring government woman myself. You can’t say that no one would want me.” She said jokingly while moving her hands over her hips to form the curves of a perfect woman.

            “That’s exactly what I’m saying.” I smiled her direction and was met with another swift punch in the arm.

            We went with the flow of 16-year-olds to the left and entered the school’s auditorium. It was already filled with hundreds of kids ready to be screened.

            “Let’s sit somewhere in the back. People tend to scare me or vice versa.” Calla said.

She grabbed my arm and led me to the back right section of the auditorium. There was a balcony, but the bottom level was enough to hold everyone so it wasn’t currently in use. There was probably some other soldiers up there keeping watch of everyone. The auditorium was filled with 16 year-olds from more than 20 other surrounding high-schools. They preferred doing the tests at military schools because it required less support from the United Nations military forces.

Even so, the room was filled with several familiar faces of those that had played football or had the same classes. If you ever wanted to see how well a school was divided into cliques, an assembly was the perfect place to look. The kids in the front had their suit and ties on. The nerds were pretty in to these things. There were some that actually said they wanted to go to The Cloud. It was a historical scientific achievement that would be awesome to study. It was the first device capable of artificial gravity.

The football kids usually sat as far back as possible. If this was a normal assembly they would be passing a football back and forth. Right now they sat quiet. It seemed that an unwritten law had silenced everyone in the auditorium because it was just becoming apparent that no one was talking. I guess even though we were pretty sure that no one would test positive, the very idea was a bit daunting for all of us.

The lights dimmed everywhere except for the stage and the lady from outside entered from one of the sides. The curtains were still closed behind her, most likely hiding something that had to do with the testing process. She held a clear piece of glass in her left hand and slowly walked to the center of the stage where she peered out into the dimly lit students.

“Good, I’m glad that we’re all here. My name is Eveline Stone. I will begin by describing to you why this screening process is so crucial to the survival of human kind and then I will tell you about the actual tests themselves.” She said.

“N121 is a mutated enzyme in the blood. It’s chemical process breaks down the body’s immune system making it a perfect breeding ground for viruses. The N121 enzyme has been linked with millions of deaths in the years leading up to 2040. Ever since this screening process the world’s mortality rate directly linked to infectious disease has reduced to a fraction. The average life span of a human being is now well over 90 years.”

“Now, this wouldn’t have been possible if we hadn’t found this N121 enzyme. It is important to note that on average 500 young adults such as yourselves are found to be carriers of this enzyme. The United Nations removes and isolates these carriers so that they may not have a chance to reproduce and keep that mutation going. After the United Nations gained complete control of the world’s governments, it was able enact health codes that prohibits any forms of sexual intercourse or courtship before the age of 16. These laws are to protect us and to give us a higher purpose.”

“This will be the 14^th time that the screening has been administered. The first screening was done May 1^st, 2041 in this very area. It is administered on different days to children in the world that have turned 16. This part just so happens to still be May 1^st. If you are not 16 yet or have already been administered the test, please see one of the supervisors by the door so that we can verify your personnel file.”

“We will begin alphabetically by surname. We will start with the A’s and continue through until everyone has been screened. The screening process will go one by one in front of everyone.”

She pushed her finger down on the glass tablet she had been holding and the curtains began to recede to the side of the stage. Behind the stage was a slightly reclined chair with a few machines around it. There were nurses with masks and about 10 soldiers against the back wall.

“The process takes a little over one minute so we should be able to get through this pretty quickly. I’m aware that no one has ever tested positive for the N121 enzyme in this state, but protocol still requires us to be thorough.”

“Two outcomes are possible.” She pointed to a monitor that was behind the instruments. “That monitor will either turn red or green. If it turns green, you have the rest of the day off.” She paused, “If it turns red you will be an outcast to society and shipped off planet to the space station called The Cloud. This process is called being Bronzed. Bronzing is an important part in keeping our society safe and healthy. As a result of testing positive for the N121 enzyme you will be immediately escorted to a vehicle that will take you to the nearest space port and there you will be given more instructions. But, seeing your service record from the past I’m assuming everyone will be green. Let’s begin.”

She started calling out names and little by little the students started filing in a line. It appeared that all the students had to do was sit in the chair, the nurse would draw their blood and then she’d put the blood in a machine that would change the screen behind it green. It was actually going pretty quickly. She was already done with the A’s and starting on the B’s.

“So, do you think the nerds are right?” Calla asked. I looked at her.

“What do you mean?”

“Do you think The Cloud would a pretty cool place to go?” She replied.

“I can’t tell if you’re being serious or not, but I imagine being forced to live in a space station for the rest of your life would not be that fun. They only say that because their greatest love is science.” I retorted.

“So what’s your greatest love, Shawn McCoy?” She said in a flirting manner.

“My greatest love is my friends and family, so basically just you and my mom.” I laughed to myself. “I would do anything to protect you.”

“Wow, I’m surprised by that answer.” She said with a look of astonishment on her face.

“Wait, why? You didn’t think I could be sentimental?” I scoffed.

“No, I’m surprised because you sound so mature.” She smiled and I knew she was mocking me.

“Well, you should tell my mom that. She would never believe that you just called me mature, even if you were making fun of me.”

“EVANS, CALLA.” Came a loud voice from the stage.

“I guess that’s me.” She said.

I stood up to let her pass into the aisle and then she turned around and gave me a hug. She was quite a bit shorter than I was but her small frame fit perfectly against me. I looked around to see if anyone was paying attention. Everyone was looking forward at the screening process. We pulled apart.

“What was that for?” I asked her.

“That was for the ‘just in case.’” She replied.

“Nothing will happen to you. I can promise you that.” I told her

She smiled at me and then skipped down to the stage level of the auditorium. I was feeling rather nervous for her. I had known her basically my whole life. My mom had moved here when I was three and she was the first friend I ever had. I had a few other good friends, but out of all of them she was my closest. If anything happened to her now, I don’t know what I would do.

It was her turn. She walked up the stairs onto the stage and gracefully fell into the chair. They hooked up a couple wires, one to her heart and one to her temple. The nurse used a device to draw the blood from her arm and then used the same device to put it in the machine. It didn’t make any noise, at least any noise that could be heard from the back of the auditorium. Then something happened that hadn’t happened with any of the other tests. It wasn’t green, but it wasn’t red. It was a black screen with ‘[ERROR]’ printed on it. It made a different beeping sound that caused Eveline to stop in the middle of the name she was reading and stare at the screen.

“That’s interesting.” Was all Eveline had to say.

The nurses didn’t know what to do and the soldiers stepped in front of the exit. I don’t think anyone was sure what they were supposed to do next.

“I guess you’ll have to run her again. These things happen if people have been breaking the law. We’ll have to question you afterwards no matter what happens now.” Eveline gave a harsh smile.

Calla looks directly and tried to appear as calm as possible, but I could tell she was not calm by the way she was bending her fingers back and forth. She always did that when she was nervous. The nurses started to administer the test again. They drew the blood and put it in the machine. The machine thought for a moment and then spit out a solid red screen. At that the soldiers tensed up and two immediately ran to Calla’s side. She looked panicked and not sure what to do.

How could this be? That’s impossible. There’s no way she could have this Enzyme both of her parents have lived here their entire life. What did Eveline mean by, ‘these things happen if people have been breaking the law’? It didn’t make sense. Before I knew it I was on my feet walking toward the Stage. The security guards had Calla on her feet and were beginning to guide her to the back door.

“This system is rigged!” I yelled. Everyone in the audience and on stage had stopped what they were doing and looked at me. “There’s no way Calla could have tested positive. There’s no way!”
            By then two more soldiers had appeared on both sides of me. They grabbed my forearm and bicep to hold me in place. Their grips were in such a way that escape would probably result in bone. Eveline’s facial expression hadn’t even changed. She looked down at me.

“And what’s your name, little boy?” She asked. The fact that she called me a little boy made my face hot. I tensed up.

“My name is Shawn McCoy.” I replied through gritted teeth.

“Shawn…McCoy you say? McCoy? where do I know that name? Ah yes, Commander McCoy’s son. You’re something special aren’t you?” She motioned for the guards to take me up to the stage. “We’re going to go a little out of order for this. Test him.” She barked.

It was the first time he had seen her get emotional but her attitude was definitely apparent. The chair was soft and in a different situation might be considered quite comfortable. They stuck the wires on my chest and head and began to draw my blood from my left arm. It wasn’t a needle that they were using. They set it against my skin and pulled the trigger. There was no pain but the vial began to feel with a red liquid. They put the blood in the device and it did in fact make a slight humming sound. The screen was out of my view but I could tell that it was an error by the beeping sound it made and the reflection in Eveline’s glasses.

“Run him again!” she commanded. Her voice was losing the calm in it. It was also becoming very apparent physically. Her stress made me smile.

The nurses were at my side again monitoring my vitals and drawing my blood with a clean container. They put the container in the machine and it hummed again. After a few seconds it made the same beeping sound. Eveline looked distraught.

“Run him one more time and if it gives the same result, take him with the girl for interrogation. He probably has something to do with her error anyway.” She said.

The nurses performed the same procedure and were met with the same conclusion. Eveline looked me in the eye without saying a word. Then she looked up and motioned for me to be taken away by looking at the doorway they had taken Calla through. She stopped them as I got to the door and walked over to me. Her voice grew to a whisper.

“Let’s hope this ends up a little better than it did with your father.” She sneered and walked away.

Bronzed - Chapter 1 (GLD)

CHAPTER 1

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To: Office of the United Nations Space and Sciences Director-General

From: Department of Interplanetary Space Exploration

Date: 14:56 UTC, September 22, 2040

The following letter is CLASSIFIED and the contents are to be considered TOP SECRET.

I'm writing with regards to the two American astronauts, Commander James McCoy and Captain Jennifer Johnson that broke the law on the space station Hubris. It is obvious that this location is Top Secret and for the same reason I recommend that they are stripped of their title and dishonorably discharged. They were out of line with their act and in so doing threaten everything that we've worked so hard to do.

I must admit, we knew that this complication was a possibility when we decided to send one female and one male to take the place of the two Russians that were there previous. However, this does not justify their keeping a secret Captain Johnson's pregnancy and birth of a child. A child born and raised in space could suffer very horrible limitations on growth and even death. They must have known these risks.

They are of course free to raise the child, though his 16 months off planet might destroy his chance for a regular life. They will be arriving in 2 months and I will personally oversee the child's health exams. I hope you take into consideration what I have recommended. Inaction can only result in a higher probability of subversion.

Edna Willows

Director of Interplanetary Space Exploration

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“Mom, what’s the deal? There’s no way I’m going to test positive. No one has tested positive for the N121 enzyme in the southern United States in the 14 years that they’ve been doing these tests.”
            “I know. But I’m your mother. I’m supposed to worry.” She said.

“Well it’s making me nervous.” I responded. I pointed to her bedroom door, “maybe you can go worry in there so I don’t freak out.”

She laughed, “okay, I’ll stop worrying, but you have to promise not to test positive.”
            She knew full well there was no way I could make a promise like that. These tests were designed to find a certain enzyme hidden away in the blood that no other test could find. How was I possibly supposed to know if I already had this enzyme?

“Mom, I can’t really promise that, but if it will make you feel better than I guess I have no other choice.” I said.

“That’s good. Now finish getting ready for school so you don’t miss the bus. If you skip school today they’ll send the military to our house to search for you” she grinned, “but at least I’d be able to visit you in prison.”

I smiled back at her. I knew what she meant. The place where they kept everyone that tested positive for the N121 enzyme was sent to a space station called The Cloud. Visitations were quite impossible.

I made my way to the bedroom to get dressed. The military academy had strict guidelines on the dress code. You could either wear a dress shirt with a tie, which was what the nerds always wore, or you could wear the military standard issued jumpsuit. The jumpsuit wasn’t that bad. There were two colors to choose from and it had a flashy flag on it. The dark blue jumpsuit it is. It was nice and clean and smelled of springtime and grass. Mom must have washed it last night knowing I would pick it. She knows me so well.

I sat down to tie my boots and while finishing the double knot my eyes fell upon one of the few pictures I had of my father. It rested on my desk in a golden picture frame. He was in his Space Academy suit that was custom for the 2030s. Maybe I should bring him with me today. Before I knew it, my hand was on the picture frame opening up the back to get the picture out. I had read the note on the back of the picture several times but I read it to myself one more time: ‘I love you Jen. I love you Shawn. You are both more precious than gold to me.’

I shoved the picture in my pocket and picked up my book bag. I didn’t have anything to pack since I didn’t get any of my books out the night before. No homework was due on the day of the testing. As soon as you got tested you could go home. I was right in the middle of the alphabet though so at best I would have a half day. At worst I would be on my way to a shuttle to blast me to The Cloud.

“Shawn, the bus gets here in two minutes! I’m serious. You can’t be late.” Mom yelled from the kitchen.

“Okay, mom! I’m on my way out.”

I started toward the door but looked back at my room to take it in maybe for the last time. The bookshelves were filled mostly with old novels. Clothes were scattered all over the floor. The bed wasn’t made. The whole place was in disarray. It was home.

I can’t be late.

I ran past the kitchen and started to open the door when a hand grabbed me.

“You’re not going to leave without a goodbye kiss.” Mom said.

“Of course not.”

I tilted my head down so she could kiss me on the forehead. She was significantly shorter than me even though she was above the average height for a woman. I must have gotten all of my height from my father.

She kissed my head and I looked back at her face. She looked tired, almost exhausted.

“Are you ok, mom?”

“Yes, yes of course. Now hurry off, you have one minute now.” She said, folding her arms and smiling. “I love you.”

“Love you too.”

I ran out into the hallway of our apartment complex and down the two flights of stairs to the front door. Our apartment complex wasn’t as secure as most complexes. It only required an eye and thumb scan to get in, but not to get out. Most apartment buildings were requiring both entrance and exit scans to know who was coming and going at all times. Luckily for me, that meant I wouldn’t be late for the bus.

I pulled the front door open and leaped the four stairs down to the sidewalk. The bus stop was right in front of the door and of course the bus was loading the last person. The sensor on the door of the bus turned toward me and series of red lasers on my body.

“New passenger detected.” A female voice said.

“Yeah, it’s just me.” I responded

“Bus Pass, please.” She stated.

I stuck out my pass to be scanned on the module next to the door. The red light disappeared and was replaced with a green light.

“Thank you, Shawn McCoy. Please come aboard so that we can depart.”

Since my stop is the first stop I always get first choice for which seat I want. I shared the stop with a few other people but they sat at the front. The back was always mine. It was a nice place to sit and think. There were a few more stops until anyone got on that was worth talking to.

“Shawn!” someone yelled.

I jolted upright.

“What the heck is going on?”

“You must have fallen asleep in the 3 minutes it takes to get from your stop to mine. It figures. What, were you up all night studying or playing virtual games? And you might want to think about wiping that drool off your face.”

“Yeah, whatever Calla.” I said while using the sleeve of my jumpsuit to wipe the saliva that had accumulated on my lips and chin. “No I wasn’t playing virtual games. I was studying plays for tonight. It’s our biggest game of the season.”

 “Oh, studying football plays, huh? Haha, you’re lying. But, why would anyone put a football game on the same day as the tests?” She smiled as she slid in to the spot next to me.

“Probably to make it seem like nothing. The tests scare people and even though no one has been chosen from any surrounding high school, I guess it brings comfort to some. They want us to live our lives like it will always go on.”

“Well, my dad says it’s a conspiracy. He has all of these ideas about how the random testing isn’t so random. I usually tell him to shut up because I don’t want him to end up jail.” She laughed to herself. “I’m just glad we don’t have classes today. Oh, and I’m glad that my last name is Evans. It means I get out of school earlier than you.” She sticks her tongue out quickly.

“Yep, you get to do a whole bunch of nothing because you never do anything without me except maybe paint. Who paints? Are you coming to the game?” I asked.

“Nope, there’s nothing there for me. Maybe if there was someone worth cheering for…” She watched as my expression dropped and then said, “Haha, of course I’m coming! I hate the social wave, but I’ve gotta support my best friend, right?”

“Ok, good. I usually play well when I know someone I like is watching.”
            “Well, won’t your mom be there?” She asked.

“No, she’s working a double today. I won’t see here again until tomorrow morning. She’s saving up money so that we can go on a trip somewhere later this year. I hope it’s somewhere foreign.”

“Foreign? Do you even speak any other languages?” She said.

“No, well kind of German, But look. School. And I am so happy to be here. Can you tell I’m overjoyed? Because I am. I’m completely ecstatic about these tests.” I said trying to sound as sarcastic as I possibly could.

“Oh, shut up.” She said as she hit me playfully in the arm. 

Bronzed - Introduction (GLD)

At the age of 16, Shawn is scanned for a rare blood condition like every child his age is. The government seeks out those with this condition because of their likelihood to spread diseases and plagues. If someone is found to have this rare condition, they are "bronzed." This means they are quarantined and shipped off planet to an orbiting space station called “The Cloud” where they are meant to spend the rest of their lives.

Shawn discovers that he has this rare condition and is bronzed. He doesn’t even get the chance to say goodbye to his family and friends and is immediately put on an unmanned space shuttle to The Cloud. The only thing spoken throughout the entire flight comes from the computer terminal by the door right as he steps off the shuttle. It says, “Welcome to The Cloud. You have become an outcast to society and will thus be involved in certain experiments. Your only duty here is to survive as long as you can.”

Maxine - Introduction (MAX)

     Max is going on spring break with a few of her friends to Rio de Janeiro. A few hours from their destination, the 747 they're on experiences some major turbulence and crashes somewhere into the Amazon Rainforest. With only a few survivors, Max must try to stay alive while she waits for a rescue. However, the jungle is not as it seems.

     As Max discovers more about the crash site, she realizes that everything isn't as it seems. She's is caught in a familiar world that she has never known and fighting a familiar battle that she has never fought. She begins to discover things about herself that she never knew and that should not be possible. Eventually the only question that she wants answered is: was this plane crash an accident or was she brought here for a reason?

The Indestructible Earth - Introduction (SIX)

     Six sorcerers awaken an ancient magic that has been sealed away for thousands of years. The magic imbues the sorcerers with unfathomable powers over the elements and grants them immortality. Mankind doesn’t stand a chance against the might of “the Six”. After being conquered, the earth was divided into the six parts from which the sorcerers could rule over.

     25 years later, a boy by the name of Alik seeks to establish a resistance that can destroy Malakor, the sorcerer that has conquered his home land. He believes that each member of the Six has a weakness of some sort hidden away. Can Alik find Malakor’s weakness and finally rid the world of one of the Six once and for all?

Windmill - Introduction (WDS)

     There comes a time when every boy, big or small, has the desire to rule the world. It’s an idea very easy to say but rather difficult to imagine how such a thing could be accomplished. Some things are certain, for example: The world can be conquered if the person conquering it has three things. First, this person must be willing to give away everything. Second, this person must have access to secret technology and anything he or she wants. Lastly, this person must have friends in high places in almost every country of the world. A person must have these three things before they can even consider world domination. 

     This is a story of a boy that grew up with world domination always floating around in his mind. A boy that later became a man—marrying, having children and graduating. This man graduated in the field of Physics with a Ph.D. He went on to discover how to make many things. He presented these things or discoveries to the world. This is when he gained friends and prestige in every country. He realized that he would have to leave his family and friends for hi goal. This is my story. A story about how I became Emperor of the world: written in the present to define the future.